Press

Recent Press Coverage:

Opponents of Kinder Morgan’s proposed $5 billion, 429-mile pipeline connecting natural gas supplies from southwestern Pennsylvania through New York state to eastern Massachusetts are gearing up to outline their viewpoints.

“Pipeline Education & the Big Picture” is designed to present the case against the Northeast Energy Direct project, which — if approved by federal regulators next year — would pass through portions of seven Berkshire towns along existing utility corridors in Hancock, Lanesborough, Cheshire, Dalton, Hinsdale, Peru and Windsor.

Over an eight-month period in 2013 and early 2014, closed-door discussions by an obscure but powerful organization, New England States Committee on Electricity (NESCOE), led to a decision by its members to impose a charge of dubious legality on all New England electricity ratepayers in order to support the funding of a natural gas pipeline that is planned to traverse Massachusetts from Richmond in the west to Dracut in the east.

LENOX — U.S. Sen. Edward Markey has put the Kinder Morgan energy giant and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on notice — he plans to closely scrutinize the company’s controversial proposal for a Tennessee Gas Co. high-pressure pipeline through more than 40 Massachusetts communities, including eight in Berkshire County.

“I will make sure that Kinder Morgan and our federal regulators are using the most up-to-date information and are completely transparent about whether this pipeline will be used to export the natural gas to foreign markets and that the interests of the people are put before the interests of the oil and gas industry,” the Massachusetts Democrat told The Eagle in an e-mail message this week.
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New York resident Bruce Shenker didn’t used to be concerned about the three underground natural gas pipelines running through his property. But after learning about Kinder Morgan’s Northeast Energy Direct, a natural gas pipeline that’s proposed to run through his land, Shenker started getting worried. To residents whose property stands in the way of the proposed route — and for others in Massachusetts and New York who are concerned about the impact it may have on their states — the pipeline represents both the larger concerns that come along with America’s increasing focus on natural gas and the personal struggle to protect local land and quality of life.[read more]

When temperatures plummeted across the Northeast last winter, spot natural gas prices along the Eastern Seaboard spiked to eye-popping levels causing many to call for additional pipeline capacity. However, as is often the case with energy issues, the situation is more complex than it may first appear and constructing expensive long-term pipeline capacity may not be the best way to address the issue.. [read more]

DEERFIELD – Kinder Morgan has 15 days to respond to concerns raised by the town’s Board of Health before it meets to evaluate the safety of the company’s proposed natural gas pipeline and decide whether it should be allowed to pass through the town.

During a public hearing Tuesday night, the board presented a series of exhibits, mostly news articles concerning Kinder Morgan’s safety record and alleged violations of safety regulations on other pipeline projects, lists of pipeline accidents in the United States and around the world, and articles about the chemicals contained in fracked gas. [read more]

SANDISFIELD – Dismissing environmental concerns by the state and town residents, the Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. is seeking an expedited federal review of its plan to install a 3.8-mile storage loop in the community.

For months now, I’ve been reading about the 180 miles of gas pipeline that energy giant Kinder Morgan is planning on running between Boston and New York state. First called the Tennessee Gas Pipeline (TGP) Northeast Expansion Project, then renamed the TGP Northeast Energy Direct Project, the pipeline was originally touted by New England’s governors as part of the area’s transition to clean energy. They wanted it so much that they proposed passing an extra tax on electricity users to pay for it.

GREENFIELD – A New England consortium of governors and energy executives has indicated it wants to slow a proposal to petition the federal government for utility customer tariffs to finance $5 billion to $10 billion in power projects like natural gas pipelines and transmission lines. [read more]

LENOX – Local lawmakers are looking to Washington for more details about Tennessee Gas Co. plans to build a pipeline through seven Berkshire communities and up to 40 other towns across northern Massachusetts.

Following a letter from the Lenox Select Board urging intervention by state Sen. Benjamin Downing, D-Pittsfield, and state Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli, D-Lenox, efforts are being intensified to involve Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Edward Markey, both Massachusetts Democrats, and U.S. Rep. Richard Neal, D-Springfield, whose district includes Berkshire County. [read more]

DEERFIELD, Mass (WGGB) — Opposition to a proposed gas pipeline expansion is growing, especially after getting the support of local star Bill Cosby. The massive project would cut through several Franklin County communities. Friday a group of people walking across the state to raise awareness stopped off in Deerfield at a location that would be drastically be affected by the project. [read more]

As Kinder Morgan pitches its plans for an extension of a natural gas pipeline at town meetings throughout western Massachusetts, residents worried about environmental impacts are increasingly wondering what tools may be available to stop – or slow down – the steady march toward construction. A labyrinth of laws and regulations governs pipeline projects. Understanding the process is a crucial first step toward effecting changes in its design, or, possibly, adoption of an alternative to the project. [read more]

Richmond – A cross-state, 100-plus-mile march against Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co.’s potential expansion project will use Richmond as its launching point next weekend, The Eagle has learned. Dubbed the “Statewide Pipeline Resistance Relay Walk” by organizers, hundreds are expected to participate in the symbolic event, where a piece of polyvinyl chloride pipe and a petition to Gov. Deval Patrick will serve as “batons” passed from one team of walkers to the next. [read more]

Governor Patrick’s tenure is coming to an end. In numerous ways he has been an extraordinary leader, particularly in the area of environmental protection and climate change. However, a recent climate “scorecard” by the Environmental League of Massachusetts, supported by the state’s own internal analysis, suggests the Commonwealth’s current policies will miss the crucial mark in terms of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by 2020. The Patrick administration is rushing ahead with two potentially dangerous energy initiatives, which deserve greater scrutiny and can be fixed. [read more]

In January, the New England Governors announced a plan to finance new gas pipelines and electric transmission lines across the region with billions of dollars in funding from residents and businesses. In an effort to bring transparency to the process that led to and continues to inform the Governors’ plan, in March, Conservation Law Foundation filed public records requests, seeking documents from the states and the New England States Committee on Electricity (NESCOE), the agency that is working to implement this massive infrastructure initiative. [read more]

West Stockbridge – Many Berkshire County residents may be surprised to learn that there is a high-pressure fracked gas pipeline being proposed by Tennessee Gas Co., a subsidiary of Kinder Morgan of Houston, Texas, that would significantly impact the Berkshires. If built, the pipeline would originate at a pipeline hub in Wright, N.Y., enter Berkshire County in Richmond, and continue on through Lenox, Pittsfield, Dalton, Hinsdale, Peru and Windsor on its way across northern Massachusetts to Dracut, north of Boston, ultimately connecting to the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline in Maine. A number of other Berkshire County towns could land in the pipeline’s path, including Hancock, Savoy, Stockbridge, Washington, and West Stockbridge. [read more]